The Belly of the Beast

            A murmur of voices awakened him.  He tried to move but was trussed up tightly, and besides, any attempt at movement released blinding pain in his skull.

            “What is it?”  someone said.

            “Should we eat it?” another voice questioned.

            Jess tried to focus enough to read their feelings but because of the headache screaming like a banshee, he registered only vague feelings of fear and wonder.  They didn’t know what he was, but he guessed what they were.

            “Zyglots, I won’t hurt you.”

            He heard them scramble away and felt a surge of fear from them.

            “I come in peace,” he said, realizing how stupid it sounded after he said it. “I’d like to talk to you when my head stops pounding.”

            Jess heard something that sounded remarkably like a giggle.

            One of them prodded him, and when he opened his eyes, he saw a zyglot stuck to the ceiling of the tunnel.  Jess wasn’t afraid, just surprised.  Brown hair covered the creatures, but they didn’t look like animals but rather very hairy people.  Eyes bigger than any others he had ever seen stared down at him.  He glanced at the one holding the staff that persistently poked him and saw that his hands were small but with very long fingers.  The feet were also long with very long toes.  Jess noticed the zyglot hung from the ceiling by forcing his fingers into a tiny crevice.         

            He heard the footsteps of a second zyglot moving cautiously toward him.  This one was more curious than afraid.  As soon as the zyglot reached Jess, he put the point of a spear against his chest.  Jess inhaled sharply and held his breath.

            “Open your mouth,” the zyglot said.